“Last Flight to Abuja” Movie: Grosses N8m in first week

One of the most talked about movies currently on release across West Africa, Last Flight to Abuja has grossed more than N8m at the Nigerian box office, just one week after it was premiered at the Genesis Deluxe Cinema, Lagos to huge acclaim. 

 Last Flight to Abuja, written and directed by Obi Emelonye - the award-winning producer of Nollywood’s most awarded movie, The Mirror Boy - is the only African movie this year that has been able to compete at the Nigerian box office with the very best Hollywood has to offer.

Last Flight to Abuja according to official Nigerian cinema ratings beat major Hollywood blockbusters such as Spiderman; Think like a Man, Avengers and Madagascar and was second only to the highly rated blockbuster, Dark Knight Rises.

According to a comparative Nollywood 2012 cinema release report released this week, Last Flight to Abuja grossed N8.35m in its first 7 days, with an attendance of 9,638 as against Phone Swap which sold N3.72m in its first week and recorded an attendance of 3,859, Married But Living Single made N2.35m and 2,602 in attendance and finally Maami which made N3.30m with 2,602 in attendance. Meanwhile Obi Emelonye’s previous movie, The Mirror Boy grossed N6.98m and recorded an attendance of 7,501 in its first week on release in Nigeria. The only movie that bettered this record was Return of Jenifa which made N10m in its first week.

The movie which uniquely is the first Nollywood film to be shot mostly on an airplane features an impressive ensemble cast in Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde, Jim Iyke, Hakeem Kae-Kazim, Ali Nuhu, Jide Kosoko, Olumide Bakare, Franca Brown, Uche Odoputa, Anthony Monjaro, Uru Eke, Celine Loader and a host of others.

The movie premiere which was sponsored by Diamond Bank, one of Nigeria’s leading commercial banks was widely covered by all major local press and leading international media heavyweights; CNN and Reuters for the first time in the history of a Nigerian film premiere.

In a statement released by BigSam Media, the Nigerian PR Agency for the movie, the producers stated ‘We are very happy the movie is doing so well at the cinema, this is as a result of many factors-good movie, superb publicity, apt distribution and word of mouth publicity by those who love the movie. Obi is fast establishing reputation of a trail blazer. Last year, he set the record of highest selling Nollywood movie until The Return of Jenifa came (a movie which publicity we handled), he shot Last Flight to Abuja with world most expensive camera, staged the biggest premiere ever in Nollywood, and now has the enviable record of highest grossing movie in first week in 2012. His goal is to consolidate and improve on the foundation laid by veteran and new generation of filmmakers and make Nollywood the envy of world at large’

Last Flight to Abuja sheds light on the ills in the Nigerian aviation sector and how random human errors can lead to the tragic loss of lives. The London premiere was dedicated to the memory of the passengers who lost their lives in the ill-fated Dana Airline crash which happened 3rd June 2012.

* Report compiled by Blue Pictures, Nigeria’s premiere theatrical distribution company.